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Practitioner Newsletter Issue 35, July 2021 © Darlington 11-19 Partnership

Welcome

Well, readers, we’re almost there! As the most

challenging academic year in living memory Contents draws to a close, what could provide a more ▪ Student wins prestigious law award – Carmel College fitting finale to the year than a collection of

reports on outstanding achievements by children ▪ Little sunshine awards – Longfield Academy and young people from acro ss our borough? This edition also serves as a great tribute to the ▪ Summer school – Teesside University

Herculean efforts made by staff in all Darlington ▪ Madelung’s awareness challenge – education and skills settings in ensuring

continuity of provision and support for all ▪ Dementia awareness – Haughton Academy learners, and in undertaking huge additional ▪ Hello world event – work to warrant that assessment grades are as fair as possible and demonstrate the highest ▪ Life sciences manufacturing academy – Darlington standards of fidelity. College

Across our 11-19 Partnership we have witnessed a great sense of collegiality, incredible altruism ▪ Artwork showcase – QE Sixth Form College

and a strong moral purpose, with leaders and ▪ Behaviour hub status – Carmel College staff repeatedly going above and beyond in placing the interests of learners front and centre ▪ Stem project – in all that we do. In the words of John Novak, ▪ Masked reader – Wyvern Academy education is fundamentally an imaginative act of hope. The great optimism, inventiveness, and ▪ Courses for young people - Learning & Skills resilience shown by all in the face of unprecedented challenges means we can all be ▪ Journalism apprentice wins national award – Darlington hopeful for a brighter future. College

To those young people moving on to the next ▪ Active citizenship – Haughton Academy phase in their learning journey or into employment, we all wish you every future ▪ Unemployment support – Routes To Work success. Have a very relaxing and enjoyable summer, everyone! Mike Butler Chief Executive of The Education Village Academy Trust

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Carmel College student wins prestigious law

award

The Linklaters Making Links Schools Challenge is an opportunity for year 12 students (or equivalent) at non-selective UK state schools to develop the skills needed to become a commercial lawyer and win prizes for themselves and their schools.

The competition is run by Linklaters (a member of

the "Magic Circle" of elite London-headquartered law firms) and the national competition is part of Linklaters Making Links project, which promotes social mobility and aims to help young people, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds, to develop their commercial awareness, opening up the possibilities for a career in law to those who

may have previously seen it as inaccessible.

Carmel College Sixth Form student Chloe Lubuku recently took part in this challenge. The application process included a PowerPoint submission of five slides on which students shared their ideas on the challenges and opportunities

faced by businesses in a post COVID world. Many applications were made nationally, however only 20 students were selected to take part in the final.

Chloe took part in an all-day event to familiarise herself with Linklaters as a company and worked closely with Linklaters employees and other like-minded students to develop their original ideas

from their application. Participants were asked to submit a two-minute video presentation focusing on and developing key ideas from their original PowerPoint presentation. These presentations were reviewed by the Linklaters team, and four students were then chosen to

present their ideas live, in front of a virtual panel of judges who were free to ask students questions about their presentations to further develop their ideas. Following the presentations, Chloe Lubuku was announced the national winner of the challenge.

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I Little Sunshine Awards I

Two dedicated pupils have received awards for contributions to their communities during lockdown after being nominated by their school.

Chloe Stephenson and Sophie Porteous, who both attend Longfield Academy, were presented with the Morrison’s Little Sunshine Award after they each decided to use their time away from school to give something back to their communities.

Year 9 Sophie used the internet to source donations of food and made up food parcels for the Great Aycliffe

Cancer Support Group, which delivered them to ‘at risk’ families shielding from Covid-19. She also helped to wrap more than 100 Christmas presents for children supported by ARCH North East, a Teesside charity that provides care and counselling to survivors of sexual assault. Sophie said, “I just wanted to do something to help my community. Not everyone is as fortunate as us, so I did my best to try to ensure that other people can have a nice life.”

Chloe, who is in Year 8, earned her award by picking up litter for recycling around Darlington’s Thompson Street East after noticing how dirty the area was during a family walk. She said, “There’s always litter around there, and I just thought maybe we could tidy it up a bit. I asked my mum, and together we worked for around three hours, and filled up a few big bin bags. We wanted to try to keep it a nice place for walking – if we don’t all do our part, it’s just going to get worse.” The pair were each presented with an award certificate, a box of chocolates, and a book token by Claire Hunter, community champion for Darlington’s Morrison’s store.

Claire said, “Morrison’s launched the Little Sunshine Awards in 2021 to recognise the good works performed by school-age children around the country during the Covid-19 crisis, and we’ve been very proud to see how our communities have come together over the last year. The contributions made by young people often go overlooked and given how they all have had a very tough time during lockdown, we thought it was important for their good efforts to be recognised.” Nick Lindsay, head teacher of Longfield Academy, said, “Sophie and Chloe are excellent

ambassadors for Longfield, and brilliant examples of the commitment to one’s community – both at home and at school – that we try to foster here. We’d also like to say a huge thank you to Claire

for visiting the school to recognise Sophie and Chloe’s fantastic work in such a lovely manner. As a school, we could not be prouder of the girls for their selfless acts of kindness. I very much hope their efforts will inspire others to follow their example and give back to their communities.”

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I Teesside University Online Summer School I From 27th to 29th July students can take part in six hours of online subject taster sessions delivered by academic staff, along with optional support sessions to prepare them for applying to university, including: completing your UCAS application, writing an effective personal statement and a student Q&A panel.

We are also offering online evening social activities. For anyone who wants to find out more, please visit www.tees.ac.uk/summeruniversity We are now offering students in year 12/13 the opportunity to book their very own in-person campus tour. Students will be shown around our Middlesbrough campus by one of our student ambassadors. Each tour takes about an hour and includes all the key University buildings such as the library, Student Life, Students' Union, gym, plus the option to look at the subject buildings and accommodation that may be relevant to them.

Please note that, to stay within the current restrictions, there will be the opportunity to go into a select number of buildings. However, we are currently unable to tour inside student accommodation.

To book a place visit www.tees.ac.uk/campustours

ITeam Charley Madelung’s Awareness challenge I Haughton Academy pupil Jakob, decided he would like to take on a challenge to run a marathon over the Easter holidays starting Monday 29th March and ending on Sunday 11th April to support one of his close friend’s charity Madelung’s Awareness and Durham Treetops Children’s Ward who care for Charley. He completed the challenge in 12 days with one rest day. His total running mileage was just over 27 miles in 11 running days!

We as a school and his family are extremely proud of what he has achieved, and so is he. Family have expressed thanks to everyone who has sponsored him for Team Charley Madelung's Awareness challenge. He has raised £273 so far. He is a super star 䈏 ✨ 

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I Dementia Awareness I Haughton Academy pupils have been addressing the issue in tutor time as part of Dementia Action Week, an Alzheimer’s Society campaign. More than 800 pupils across all year groups have taken part in live on-line sessions led by Belinda Williams, the Dementia Friendly Communities Coordinator for Darlington. Pupils decided on the best way to support the social action movement and came up with ideas including fund raising, a range of practical steps and ways to raise awareness.

Belinda said, “People living with dementia face social isolation now more than ever. Becoming a dementia friend is a unique and important opportunity to learn more about how it affects people. Armed with that understanding, the actions we take can support, include and actively involve people affected by dementia in our communities. Creating a dementia-friendly generation is crucial to changing the way we think, talk and act about dementia.” According to the Alzheimer’s Society, nearly one in three young people know someone living with dementia and while it was once a grandparent, increasingly it could now be a parent.”

Darlington Borough councillor for Haughton, Chris McEwan, who has championed making Darlington more dementia-friendly throughout his career, said, “To become dementia-friendly

isn’t about the NHS and local authorities writing a plan, it’s about initiatives that raise awareness. I think what Haughton Academy has done is spectacular. Having over 800 pupils take the training in one go is an amazing effort and it’s fantastic to see them get behind this. Those children will influence others and show them how to display compassion. This is a huge step in creating a cross-generational understanding of this terrible disease.”

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I Dementia Awareness continued I Assistant headteacher at Haughton Academy, Fiona Campbell, has been the driving force behind the school campaign. She said, “I’m really pleased so many of our pupils took part in the training. Our tutor sessions over Dementia Action Week have been all about raising awareness and it’s been amazing to see our pupils turn their new-found knowledge into actionable personal commitments to make a difference.” For more information about Dementia Friendly Darlington, please contact: [email protected] or call 07483 137521.

I Hello World event I Wyvern pupils from Years 8, 9 and 10 took an active part in Teesside University’s ‘Hello World’ one day event. The event celebrated women in digital technology and was aimed at inspiring young women from across the region to consider a career in computing.

The event included a panel of inspirational women speaking about what and who inspired them to pursue a career in digital technology mixed with a range of creative and technical workshops with contributions from leading companies in the field, including Industrial Light and Magic, Arcus Animations, Vianet, Razorblue, Sumo Digital, Creative Assembly, Ubisoft and Accenture.

During ‘Hello World’ Teesside University asked students to submit their inspirational quotes. Kayleigh Parry from Wyvern Academy was selected as one of the winners with, “At the end of the day, we can endure much more than we think.” Quote by Frida Kahlo.

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I Life Sciences Manufacturing Academy I

School-leavers and adult learners are being given the opportunity to experience the potential of

a career life science manufacturing thanks to a new programme being led by the National Horizons Centre. The Life Sciences Manufacturing Academy allows the next generation of life

scientists to gain first-hand experience of what a career in the biopharmaceutical manufacturing

sector might look like.

The academy is a partnership between the National Horizons Centre, a national centre of excellence for the bioscience industries, together with the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI), and FUJIFILM Diosynth Technologies.

After the pilot phase the Life Sciences Manufacturing Academy will be expanded out to other

colleges in the region and other industry partners. The pilot programme will take place over a fortnight later this year and will see two cohorts of up to 15 Darlington College students spend a week in the laboratories of the National Horizons Centre and CPI at Central Park in Darlington, gaining hands-on experience working with the state-of-the art equipment alongside leading bio- scientists. The students will develop a business case which will then be used when they spend a second week

with industry, which for the pilot will be with FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies. Participants will move around all the departments of the organisation, talking to employees about their business plan. At the conclusion of the programme, the students will each be assigned a mentor who they will meet with once a month for six months. Ultimately, the Life Sciences Manufacturing Academy aims to create a ten-year pipeline of industrially relevant trained employees for the

region’s organisations, which will help cement the reputation of the North East as the leading destination for life science manufacturing in the UK.

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Life Sciences Manufacturing Academy I I

Dr Jen Vanderhoven, Director of the National Horizons Centre, said, ‘The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how vital the life science manufacturing sector is for the health and prosperity of the UK. The Life Sciences Manufacturing Academy will enhance and protect these accomplishments by ensuring that the growth and sustainability of the sector is maintained with a pipeline of talented and engaged employees.’ Kevin Thrower, Learning and Development Manager at FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies,

said, ‘I am very excited that FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies has been part of this inspiring project to give young people the opportunity to experience real life science across the three organisations. It will allow the students to understand how a medicine is identified, researched, and commercially developed and produced. Our goal is to inspire these young people to follow a science related career on Teesside which will not only provide them with a rewarding career,

but also add benefit to the region and society.’ Dr Amy Smith of CPI, said, ‘The North East produces 33% of the UK’s GDP in pharmaceutical manufacturing and is a powerhouse in the UK life sciences sector. This collaboration will enable the next generation of scientists and technologists to see first-hand what life is like within research, innovation and commercial manufacture settings and will also demonstrate cutting

edge technologies, such as those used to make the mRNA vaccines which fight COVID-19.’ Carole Todd, Deputy Principal of Darlington College, said , ‘We are delighted and excited to be a part of this project as it will give our science students valuable first-hand experience of

developing manufacturing projects within the life sciences sector. Our students will also benefit

from mentoring from industry-based experts which will help steer their career choices.’ Tees Valley Mayor, Ben Houchen said, ‘The life sciences sector in Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool is critical to our local economy and the nation’s health. You just have to look at the vital role our region is playing in the fight against the Coronavirus with all 60 million doses of the Novavax vaccine being produced by FUJIFILM Diosynth in Billingham. Growing our life

sciences sector is an important part of my plan for jobs, and this academy will give students the

skills to succeed in this vital sector. By inspiring and training the next generation of scientists, we can continue to secure jobs and investment in this region as we lead the way in the industries of the future.’

For more information and to apply for one our Science courses please visit - https://darlington.ac.uk/courses/science/

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Bowes Museum showcase QE student’s artwork I I Earlier this year, first year Fine Art students from Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College participated in an exciting online workshop with The Bowes Museum, and their work now forms part of an interactive virtual exhibition. The students took part in two sessions and their artwork was transformed into two images by artist, Melanie Kyles. These are now on display on the Museum’s website and social media platforms in an exhibition entitled ‘Who do you worship?’.

The workshops were in response to Dieric Bouts the Elder’s painting ‘St Luke Drawing the Virgin and Child’ which returned to the Museum last autumn. Also featured in the virtual tour are pieces by former Art Foundation students, Elizabeth Jatwa and Chloe Myers. Elizabeth uses acrylic paint in ‘Where I felt clean’ whilst Chloe opts for a mixed media collage in ‘Lullabies for Tired Eyes’.

Student, Caitlin Fearns, comments, ‘The project with The Bowes Museum really added some excitement to lockdown. Working with different people opened up new ways of looking at art

and I’ve taken a lot from the workshops which I can use within my work in future’. Amy Foster adds, ‘I think it was amazing that even during a lockdown we managed to work as a group to produce a class piece which is now on display in The Bowes Museum. With the help of the internet and the opportunity from the Museum, we were able to come together to make a lovely interpretation of Dieric Bouts the Elder’s painting’.

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QE student’s artwork continued I I Dr. Carol Sommer, teacher of Fine Art at QE, concludes, ‘The Bouts project gave students a wonderful opportunity to work from home with co-ordinator Jess White from The Bowes Museum and artist, Melanie Kyles. Melanie’s curation of the students’ designs into two

fantastic images allowed students to be involved in collaborative working and we hope that we are able to see the exhibition in person.’

To view the virtual exhibition on display at The Bowes Museum, please

visit: https://www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk/Learn/Young-People/Young-Curators#.

Carmel College awarded behaviour hub status I I The Department for Education has revealed the first 22 lead schools for its new £10 million Behaviour Hub programme that will start from next term. The plan is to partner high-performing schools and multi-academy trusts with those struggling with poor discipline through peer mentoring, training and support. The programme will begin at the start of the summer term with Heads or Behaviour Leads at the chosen schools working as mentors or trainers. Of the 22 lead schools named, 16 are academies or academy trusts. There are nine secondary schools, seven primaries, three special schools, a PRU, an alternative provision provider and an academy trust that includes mainstream primary and secondary schools, a special school and an alternative provision college.

The 22 leads are spread across the country with five in the South East, three in the West Midlands, North East and London, two in the North West, East Midlands and in the East of England and one in Yorkshire and one in the South West. Carmel College is very proud to be chosen as one of the lead schools. The college is looking forward to working with other schools, to support them with their re-focus in behaviour and culture. 10

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Stem Project I I The Working in Stem project, with Jacqui Donnelly, Hurworth’s Business Ambassador, saw year 9 Science pupils create a list of questions to ask Steve Bagshaw, Manufacturing Advisor to the Vaccine Task Force and previous CEO of Fujifilm Diosynth

Biotechnologies. The first of these video chats is available to watch via

the Tees Valley Careers hub. The 20-minute video chat sees Steve Bagshaw talk about his career as a Chemical Engineer, his experience and how he joined the UK Covid Task Force. Examples of questions the year 9 pupils created included: What is the best thing about your job and why; did you go to university; did you always want to be a scientist; have you invented anything or been involved in making anything; do you have any regrets about school and career choices and have you ever blown anything up! Hurworth School is also working with Alistair Lloyd from Seqens (a

pharmaceutical synthesis company based at Teesside) and more interviews are being recorded from people working in a STEM career.

Masked Reader competition I I As part of Wyvern Academy’s literacy initiative, pupils were given the challenge of identifying who was behind the mask. Organised by Mrs Marsh, the 'Masked Reader' competition had staff read the blurb or an extract from a book they have enjoyed whilst wearing a filter / disguise to obscure their face. Pupils then used the clues provided to try to work out which member of staff was reading which book. The successful detectives were rewarded with Amazon vouchers.

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I Learning & Skills courses for young people I Darlington Borough Council’s Learning & Skills Service is rated ‘Good’ by L eam i ng & S.kJlls Ofsted and has successfully delivered courses to young people aged 16 – 18 lillWii~-~.-.­ for many years. We offer Apprenticeships, Diplomas and Study ~ Programme courses in a small, supportive setting. Our learners thrive with us then progress to employment or further learning.

Apprenticeships Diplomas Study Programme / -.. 11 2.!L

We offer Apprenticeships in: Business Administration, Customer Service, Site Joinery, Adult Care, Healthcare, Teaching Assistant, Early Years Educator and Motor Vehicle.

We currently have employers waiting to employ apprentices (including current year 11s) while they train. For more information on current vacancies and apprenticeships, please contact Graham Curry by email [email protected] or call 01325 407570 / 07949 845325. Level 1 and 2 Diplomas are offered to 16-18 year olds and run for one academic year. The courses involve some short work experience and are completely free. For further information contact Debbie Brown by email [email protected] or call 01325 406422 / 07983 996144. Study Programme courses are designed for learners aged 16-18 years and run for a full academic year. Current courses are offered in Employability, Customer Service and Retail. These courses aim to improve learner’s preparation for adulthood, enhance their skills and improve confidence. Qualifications range from pre-entry to Level 2, depending on the learner’s ability and experience, and are free to attend. A work placement is provided for each course. For more information contact Mally Bleasby by email [email protected] or call 01325 406422 / 07983 996144.

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Journalism apprentice wins National Award I I Former Darlington College journalism apprentice Poppie Webster has been crowned Apprentice of the Year at the annual NCTJ Excellence Awards. A reporter at Newsquest’s Basildon Echo, Poppie was among 54 students, trainees and apprentices and training providers shortlisted from a record- breaking 417 entries. Poppie was described as a beacon of light in the newsroom by her news editor Ryan Jennings in the award citation read at the awards ceremony hosted virtually by Sky News last week.

She achieved a gold standard diploma with 100wpm shorthand at Darlington College and an overall distinction for her apprenticeship qualification, highlighting the issue of hate crime in the Basildon area for her final piece of work.

Poppie said, “Wow. Where do I even begin? This achievement is not something I ever expected or saw coming, to even be shortlisted was such an amazing honour. It truly has made every late night, stressful day, and terrifying door-knock worth it – and I wouldn’t change one second of it for the world. Journalism has always been something I wanted to do, and it’s times like this that remind me exactly why. It goes without saying that I couldn’t have done this without support from my Darlington College tutors, who have supported me through thick and thin, no matter what. And of course, my Echo Essex family, who have believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself. Every single person nominated deserved to win, and have no doubt put their all into their work every single day. A huge congratulations to you all!” Highly commended in the apprentice of the year category was James Robinson, now a senior journalist at Carlisle’s News and Star who studied at Darlington College. There was a commendation too for Hedi Mehrez, now health reporter at The Swindon Advertiser. Both achieved distinctions for their apprenticeship.

Meanwhile Daisy Smith, working as a freelance writer, was commended in the news journalism

trainee category for a feature on domestic violence during lockdown completed as part of her

apprenticeship final project at Darlington College.

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Journalism apprentice continued I I

Bradley Deas, who moved into a Facebook community reporter role at Bradford’s Telegraph and Argus after completing his apprenticeship at Darlington, was highly commended in the top scoop category. Errol Edwards, currently a community reporter at Darlington College, is part of the team at The Sheffield Star, who won the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion award.

Star initiatives which won praise from the judges included Errol’s coverage of the Black Lives

Matter campaign and writing about his own experiences of racism in Sheffield.

For more information and how to apply for our Journalism courses please go to https://darlington.ac.uk/course/168660/l5-nctj-dip-in-journalism/

Active Citizenship I I

Head girl, Eleanor Dallin and Head boy, Andrew Morton from Haughton Academy which took part in a Darlington Young People’s Forum, was chaired by Councillor Cyndi Hughes of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee. Eleanor and Andrew had the opportunity to speak to a panel of local councillors about their and their peers’ ‘Life during Covid’ experiences over the past months.

The panel received evidence from council officers, academics, mental health practitioners, youth groups and charities about what has been on offer, but councillors are interested in hearing directly from young people themselves in order to understand whether services are known about, being accessed equally across the borough and cover the full spectrum of needs of all children and young people in the borough.

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Routes to Work I I Do you know any 16+ people who are unemployed and looking for work? We know that looking for a job can be hard, that’s why we provide a range of support to help people overcome any barriers they might be facing and support them back into the workplace. Routes to Work can support anyone over the age of 16 with signposting, information, advice and guidance to help them prepare for and access the world of work and get on the path to a successful career. They may also be eligible to access tailored one-to-one support from a dedicated keyworker, who can help them put a plan together, get them the right skills and training, and help find the right job for them. Leslie’s story… “I had very little confidence. Then I had a meeting with Ken, a keyworker from the Routes to Work programme. This moment was the jump start which changed my life for the better… Ken was friendly and really cared - he could see my potential at a time when I could not! He got to know me and worked to understand my passions and hobbies. He lined-up a volunteering role for me which gave me the motivation and self-confidence I needed. This led to me securing a paid part-time job last year, which is amazing for me! I am now working for an amazing company helping older people to access the internet and engage in live interactive sessions. It is the perfect job for me - and I’m so happy! I can whole heartedly recommend Routes to Work to anyone who is looking to take their next step, the support is truly invaluable. If you are thinking of reaching out for support, just go for it - you have nothing to lose and everything to gain!” If you live in Darlington, are aged 16+, and want to find out how Routes to Work can help you, please contact the Darlington office. Call 01325 406170 or e-mail [email protected] Routes to Work is funded by the Tees Valley Combined Authority and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), and delivered by the Tees Valley Local Authorities: Darlington Borough Council, Hartlepool Borough Council, Middlesbrough Borough Council, Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council and Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council. ***********************************************

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